It Hurts Me Too
by The Trailblazer
Summary: AU, modern time. Ingus has been in love with Luneth for quite some time now, but Luneth is already together with Aria. And Aria is...no, you will have to read the chapter to find out ;D
1. Chapter 1 Tell Me That It Isn't True

**AN: **So here's another Final Fantasy III story for all you fans out there. Even though you're not so many ;_; Where are you all?

Once again, this story has been betad by **picklgirl** :D

The title is namned after a song by Bob Dylan and the chapter titles as well because he's just awesome! And they really go well with the story.

Of course I don't own Dylan and his songs or FFIII.

**It Hurts Me Too**

**Chapter 1. Tell Me That It Isn't True**

The school bell rang and the students of Crystal High started to pack away their books. The teacher hurriedly reminded his students of tomorrow's homework, but the chatting of the class drowned his voice, he sighed. There are around twenty students in this class, but this story focuses on only four of them. Those students are Luneth, Arc, Refia and Ingus. They were best friends and had been so for years.

"Hey, Luneth, how about going to the movies tonight?" Ingus, the teen with the short golden blonde hair and the ocean blue eyes, asked his friend while he put some books into his backpack.

When he didn't get a reply he turned only to find the desk next to him empty. He quickly looked towards the door and thought he saw the silver ponytail of his friend disappearing out in the hallway.

"He left already," sighed a girl with orange blonde hair as she placed a hand on his shoulder. This was Refia, she was the only girl in the group but she didn't mind, she was very keen about her friends. And that's why she always spoke her mind. "You have to tell him." She stated as she walked out of the classroom with Ingus and Arc.

"I agree, you can't keep it to yourself forever." Arc, the boy with short brown hair, cut in.

"How can I confess my feelings to him when he already has a girlfriend?" Ingus sounded almost devastated, he had struggled with his feelings for his best friend for a long time, but on the day he had decided to confess…

_Two months earlier. _

It was a cloudy morning, not the most romantic day for a confession, but Ingus had made up his mind and this was the day. As usual, the four friends met up to go to school together and Luneth seemed more happy than usual, which gave Ingus more confidence. If Luneth was this happy maybe he wouldn't get mad at Ingus for confessing his love.

"Luneth," Ingus started. "I have to tell you something."

Refia and Arc, who both already figured out Ingus' huge crush on Luneth, snickered a little. Ingus turned to them with a serious look.

"I have to tell you guys something too!"Luneth impatient voice interrupted them

"Okay, you can start," the blonde boy smiled. He figured it might be best to tell Luneth when they were alone. He realized that he was a little too shy or maybe embarrassed to do this in front of a crowd, even if it only was his other two best friends.

"Alright, you can never guess what happened to me last night!"

"You said you would tell us, not that we had to guess," Arc began sarcastically.

"Just guess!" Luneth exclaimed eagerly.

"You got your favorite dinner?" Refia tried.

"No."

"What could it be if not food?" teased Ingus with a grin on his face.

"I'm serious here!"

With the grin still on his face the blonde teen put his arms up in a sign of surrender. "Okay, okay, let me think… New CD player?"

"Nope."

"He hasn't gotten any gifts, I would've noticed." Declared Arc, who lived with Luneth, they were brothers after all.

"Favorite band coming to town?" Refia tried again, but if this wasn't correct she would give up and force it out of him.

"Wrong again."

"Okay, I'm done guessing, you have to tell us!" said the girl almost dangerously.

"Alright," Luneth sounded a little disappointed that they couldn't guess right but finally he could give them the good news. "I got a girlfriend!" his smile was as bright as ever and the happiness really shone through his eyes.

The three friends just stopped in their tracks staring at him unbelievably. Arc wondered how he could have missed that. Refia felt sorry for Ingus. And Ingus, his whole world just fell apart. The feeling of a knife piercing through his heart hit him when his brain managed to register the word "girlfriend."

Luneth just looked at them, still with that smile on his face and they knew he demanded a better reaction than this. Refia snapped out of it first and hugged him.

"That's so sweet!" She squealed and released the hug. "Who is she?"

"When did you have time to meet a girlfriend?" Arc's was still a little suspicious, but said it with a smile.

Ingus was quiet; he didn't know what to say, what could he say? He couldn't find the words, and that was not only because his brain had shut down nor because of the lump in his throat. One of those lumps that forms when you are on the verge of crying. Ingus didn't cry, he "knew" better.

Luneth didn't seem to take any notice of that now though; instead he answered the questions his friends were asking. "You know Aria Benett, in the class under us?"

"Yeah?" Arc and Refia nodded.

"It's her. Apparently she helps out in her father's café and that's where I met her. I was doing my homework and when she came with my order we started talking and before we knew it we were in love."

"And when was this?" Arc couldn't accept that fact that he, the smartest one in the group, had missed the fact that his brother now has a girlfriend.

"Yesterday." Luneth replied with a dreamy look.

"Yesterday?" His brother exclaimed. At least that explains why he never noticed.

"Love at first sight, huh?" Refia playfully nudged the lover boy in the ribs.

"Well," He blushed a little and scratched the back of his neck. "I suppose."

This is where Luneth finally took noticed of the petrified Ingus. "What's wrong?" he asked the blonde worriedly and took a step closer.

Ingus quickly averted his eyes and looked to the ground before returning his gaze to Luneth with his usual smirk. "I just can't believe you got a girlfriend before me?" he teased and gave the silver haired boy a light shove.

"Well, believe it!" he sounded so proud and happy that it cut Ingus heart in two.

Even worse, Ingus knew he had to be happy for his friend. This Aria could probably make him happier than Ingus ever could, and Luneth would never fall for a guy. Their time as friends had proven that Luneth was hopeless when it came to girls, he could barely pass one without giving them a wink or flash one of his bright, handsome smiles. Oh, how Ingus wished they were meant for him. Just one time at least.

"So, what was it you were going to tell?" Luneth's face had such a bright smile and his purple eyes were filled with curiosity when he looked at his blonde friend.

Another knife to the heart. "Oh…I forgot already," he dismissed the question with a wave of his hand while his heart screamed of crushed dreams.

_But that was two months ago._

Refia looked at Ingus with worry as they continued down the school hallway. "But this is killing you."

"I can handle it," he tried to sound confident but a sigh from his lips betrayed him. "But I wouldn't mind if he could spend just a little more time with us."

"Are you jealous of Aria?" Arc's soft brown eyes looked at him shockingly, while opening the door that led out of the school building.

"I don't know, maybe?" It wasn't fair of him, he knew that. With all his broken heart he wanted to be happy for Luneth but he couldn't get rid of that aching feeling that was dwelling in his chest.

"But you know he wants to spend as much time with Aria as he can," Refia spoke carefully.

"I know," there came another sigh from the broken hearted boy. "I just wish…wish he could take us with him sometime."

"I know what you mean," the girl agreed. "He shouldn't go through this by himself."

Arc looked at them with a concerned expression. "Maybe we should talk to him?"

Now that was an idea Refia liked. She wondered why she hadn't come up with it herself. "That's something we should've done a long time ago."

"Better late than never?" A weak smile formed upon Arc's freckled face.

"True!" she nodded. "Let's invite him over to dinner at my place tomorrow and talk to him."

The two boys agreed as they thought it was a splendid idea after all and hopefully Luneth would agree to come if he was offered food.

_In the meantime._

Luneth angrily cursed the elevator for not going fast enough. "I'm in a hurry, damn it!" He pushed the button for the floor he was going to once again in an attempt to make the elevator understand that he was serious.

The elevator didn't seem to be aware of the situation as it continued it its own pace until reaching the correct floor with a pinging sound. The doors didn't open fast enough either, but when they did Luneth rushed out and continued through a lit corridors with white walls. There were rows of doors on both sides of the hallway, only once in a while interrupted by a painting in calm colors. Luneth had a theory that it was to keep the people who stayed here calm and peaceful; this was a respectable hospital after all.

Reaching the door that was his destination, he slowed down, taking a deep breath to hide his small exhaustion from running. When he opened the door, he did so carefully and walked in with calm steps.

The room he walked into was quite small and only had place for a bed, a small table with two chairs and a bedside table near the bed. A vase with fresh flowers stood on the bedside table, Luneth had brought them the day before and it were white carnations, her favorite, and it had a meaning somewhere along the lines of _pure love_ and _innocence_. There was an even smaller bathroom connected to the room. The walls were painted in a soft kind of white and the window was dressed with matte, green curtains.

"Aria?" he spoke softly as he came closer to the bed where a girl with long, fair hair was laying with her eyes closed. Her features were soft and to Luneth she looked like an angel. She was his angel. "Are you awake?"

He pulled a chair in front of the bed and sat down on it, after giving her a gentle kiss on the forehead. The girl, Aria, slowly opened her eyes and the second they saw Luneth, a smile spread on her pale face. He took her hand in his, her hand was cold and he squeezed it lightly in an attempt to bring some heath to it.

"How are you feeling?" he asked even though he already knew she would give him a reassuring answer, even if that was not the truth.

"Better now when you are here," she squeezed his hand back.

He smiled, happy that she could be so strong and positive in the condition she was in. "Are they taking good care of you?"

"Of course," she said with confidence, when suddenly a rough cough interrupted her and kept her busy for another minute. Luneth was used to this by now, the first time he had panicked and called for all the nurses who could hear him, but now he knew it was better to just wait until it was over. The best thing he could do in the meantime was holding her hand or gently rub her back. It made her feel safer.

"But," Aria started as the cough seemed to give up. "I need to tell you something."

"What is it, sweetie?" He stroke some hair from her forehead and stared into her clear, light blue eyes.

With a weak smile she started talking. "You know, this disease is quite serious?"

"Yes?" Luneth replied, wondering where this was going.

"Actually, I don't have much time left." She immediately looked away; she didn't want to see his reaction.

First there wasn't much of a reaction, as Luneth didn't move a muscle. He wanted to shoot up from his seat and scream what the hell she was talking about, but he knew that would scare her. Instead he chose a more mature way of dealing with it.

"What do you mean?" his purple eyes examined her firmly, trying to get a clue about what she was thinking.

"You know what I mean," she was still looking away. "I'm…I'm going to die."

"What?" That was as long as he could keep up the mature act, he stood up from his seat rapidly and the chair almost tipped over in the process. "What are you talking about? You said the doctors could cure you. You've been fighting this for weeks, you can't give up!" His voice was slightly cracking up and it was something he wasn't familiar with, actually he wasn't familiar with any of this.

"I know, I lied." Aria's voice was quiet but determined. She didn't like it anymore than he did, but she had accepted her fate.

"Why? Why in the world did you lie, Aria?"

"Because I didn't want this to happen." She finally looked at him, only for a while though.

"And you thought I wouldn't find out eventually?"

"No, I just wanted you to stay happy for as long as possible."

Luneth sat down on the chair again, pretending to calm down while his inner voice was screaming; he looked at her and realized that he couldn't be mad at her for lying. She was always thinking of others before her.

"So…when?" he lowered his voice to keep up his new calm appearance.

"Any day now," she looked at him with sorrow in her eyes. "I wish I could have been with you more, Luneth. I've had the best two month in my life and it's all thanks to you." She leaned closer to give him a kiss which he returned gently.

"For me too. What would I do without you, Aria?" Luneth did a really good job at holding his tears back.

"You will be fine," she stated with a smile, and placed her hand on his chest where his heart would be. "I will always be with you here."

Luneth placed his own hand on top of hers. "I know, but I need all of you. I love you!"

"And I love you too, Luneth."

They shared another kiss.

**To be continued**

So what did you guys think? Leave a review and let me know! :D

I love reviews, makes me work harder. ;)


	2. Chapter 2 Man of Constant Sorrow

**AN: Finally an update! I owe my life to Silver Ecstasy for helping me perfect this.**

**Chapter 2. Man of constant sorrow**

Luneth was very distracted the following day in school and he still wasn't his usual cheerful self. When he had gone off to school with his three best friends, as usual, they had noticed that something was wrong. They had tried to ask him a couple of times, but he continued to reply that everything was alright. He lied, of course. And his friends knew that, but they also knew better than to push Luneth into talking about something he clearly didn't want to.

They all knew Aria was hospitalized, Luneth had told them some weeks ago and since then Aria and her sickness had been a sensitive subject for him. Luneth had also told them that she was going to get better soon, so they couldn't help but wonder why he acted so down. Hopefully the idea of spending some time with his friends over dinner would cheer him up a little. They haven't yet found a good time to ask him, mostly because he didn't participate much in their conversations. At most he would nod or give a faint smile before going back to his new distracted self.

It was now the last class before lunch, and Refia was thinking that the lunch break ought to give an opportunity to let Luneth know about their plans for tonight. At that time she didn't know how wrong she was.

As the lesson was about half through it was interrupted by a knock on the door. Barely two seconds later it opened and a man, dressed in a dark brown suit walked in. he whispered something to the teacher who nodded in reply.

"Luneth, you have a phone call." The suited man spoke with his eyes on the silver haired teenager.

Said teenager shared a look of confusion with Ingus who sat next to him before giving the man a nod. Luneth shared another look with Arc and Refia, who were seated behind him, as he got up to follow the man out of the classroom.

When walking down the hall he started to think about who would call him, and about what? Apparently it was so important it couldn't wait until after school.

"Aria!" Was all that came to mind. What else could be so urgent than her condition worsening? He started to walk faster; he wanted to hear her voice saying that everything was alright. Maybe they had a cure for her disease now, maybe that's what she wanted to tell him?

When they finally reached the room with the phone in Luneth quickly took it in his hands, noticing them shaking a bit, but he didn't care. He put the receiver to his ear and spoke a soft "hello?"

The reply he got was the faint voice of Aria saying his name. "Luneth, could you come to the hospital?"

He knew something bad was to happen. He swallowed back the urge to cry and nodded vigorously, but soon realized that she couldn't see him. "Yes, right away, dear."

They hung up after a few more words and a good bye. He explained the situation to the man that had come with him to the room and then he hurriedly left the school and took off towards the hospital.

His three friends, who were still stuck inside the walls of the school, had a heated discussion with each other during their lunch.

"Something must have happened since he still hasn't come back." Arc stated barely showing any interest in his food.

Refia agreed and elaborated his thought. "And it probably has to do with Aria. Maybe she was released from the hospital and he went to meet her?"

"That would make sense." Arc nodded. "I guess I'll talk to him when I get home and we will find out."

Refia nodded, and Ingus too even though he hadn't really been participating in the conversation. His thoughts had been elsewhere, he believed that if something good had happened to Luneth he would be sure to tell them. But neither of the three had gotten any texts from him revealing the good news.

"What if Aria's gotten worse?" He suggested with sad look on his face.

"You're right." They both agreed sharing glances of worry.

They continued their lunch in silence, only exchanging necessities when it came to conversations about their next class and such.

The day rolled by and neither of them heard anything from Luneth. Arc therefore promised his two friends that he would call them later in the evening to update them about Luneth's state as he was sure he'd be seeing him at home. But little did he know how wrong he was. About 11 pm Luneth was still not home and Arc was now really worried, and so were their parents, to calm them Arc had lied telling them Luneth needed to study with Refia for an upcoming test. Arc dialed the number to Refia, and then to Ingus making it possible for all three of them to talk over the phone at the same time.

"Luneth is still not home." He spoke with a sigh.

The other two replied with silence, they didn't know what to say.

Refia was the first to speak, she took a deep breath. "I guess that proves something bad happened."

Ingus nodded without realizing that they couldn't see him.

"But don't worry," she continued trying to sounds reassuring. "He will be back…when he's ready."

"I hope you're right." Arc replied, not too convinced.

"I'm always right." She stated confidently and Arc actually smiled a little.

"Thanks."

"I need to try and sleep now, if I can. But I'll see you both, and hopefully Luneth too, in school tomorrow?"

"Yeah!"

"But you'll call us, even if he comes back in the middle of night, right?" Ingus suddenly spoke.

"Of course."

They hung up and Arc went to bed feeling very anxious. He had a feeling Luneth needed him and it hurt that he couldn't be there for him at this moment. It hurt that Luneth didn't reach out to him. He knew Luneth wasn't one to show when he was sad, but they had grown up together and Arc considered it a part of the role as a brother to be there for each other. Therefore Luneth's behaviour wasn't okay even if it was a part of his personality.

The next morning Arc woke up before the alarm went off. Though "wake up" was an overstatement as he wasn't too sure if he had even been asleep. If he had it was only for a few minutes at a time. There was still no sign of Luneth that morning so he once again had to lie to his parents about Luneth spending the night at Refia's because it was too late at night to go home. And speaking of Refia, Arc should give her and Ingus a call. He made sure his parents couldn't hear him as he phoned his friends to inform them that the fourth member of their party still was missing.

"Good morning," he greeted as they picked up their phones. "He still hasn't come home..."

"Should we skip school and start looking for him?" Refia asked, too worried to bother with morning greetings.

"I think we have to."

"Me too," Ingus agreed.

"Alright, let's meet up as soon as we can and figure out the-" she suddenly stopped mid-sentence.

"The?" Arc helped.

Refia stayed silent for another few good minutes then abruptly yelled "Gimme that!" followed by a rustling sound that Arc guessed belonged to a news paper being snatched from her father. "You guys…" she almost whispered. "Aria is dead." There was a long silence before she spoke again. "The funeral is today."

The three friends had still decided to meet up and were now seated around a table at their usual café, it was a gloomy atmosphere around the table and not much was said. They needed to discuss how to handle the news about Aria's death and how to deal with a grieving Luneth. Although they were mostly deep in their own thoughts, trying to understand what had really happened and how it would affect them. Neither of them had gotten the chance to be close friends with Aria but they had still gotten to the state of calling her a "friend" and they knew how important she was for Luneth.

After some time they managed to agree that the best idea was to leave him alone for now, but they would attend the funeral to see how he was doing and depending on his state decide how to take it from there.

The time until the funeral seemed to pass so much slower than a normal day. Refia had suggested a game of cards to get their mind off the tragedy and to pass the time. They were still in the café having something to eat there until the funeral at 5 p.m.

"What time is it now?" asked Ingus for what must have been the 10th time already.

"It's just 2:45" came Arc's reply.

"Man…" he sighed while shuffling the deck of cards. Ingus was really anxious to see how Luneth was doing, he wanted to comfort him, hold him in his arms and tell him it was going to be okay. Although he knew that wouldn't help much at the moment he still wanted to be there for him in every way possible.

Luneth had spent his day like a zombie. He had been with Aria the night before as she drew her last breath, he had literally felt her soul leave her as the grip around his hand loosened. A moment of complete hollowness encircled him as he just sat there staring at her lifeless hand, still in his palm. After that he had refused to leave the room, protested when doctors attempted to carry Aria out and prepare her for the funeral and stubbornly stayed by her side.

It wasn't until much later that day the Aria's relatives had managed to convince him that he had to let go. They wanted to give her a proper burial when her body was still intact before decomposing. Luneth didn't want to, but he knew he had to respect their wish, they were her family after all.

He even made an attempt to help them out with preparations for the funeral but as he was still in his zombie like state he wasn't doing much good. Unless staring with empty eyes was considered helpful.

It felt like an eternity for Luneth, and also for his three friends in the coffee shop, until the funeral started at 5. It was a beautiful funeral, it was held outside in the cemetery by a blooming apple tree. To give off a peaceful atmosphere and to accentuate Aria's beauty the scene around her coffin was decorated with various flower arrangements. Luneth had also managed to help with carrying benches and placing them in rows.

He was now seated with Aria's family in the front rows, listening to the speeches of her relatives. Luneth had also prepared a speech but had realized he wouldn't be able to handle it, he couldn't bring himself to talk about Aria as if she was dead right now. Hell, he couldn't even accept that she was dead.

During the ceremony Luneth had observed his three best friends being present in the back, he never approached them but he glanced over at them and gave them a weak, pitiful smile. Ingus couldn't bear to watch, seeing Luneth look at them like that just broke his heart. Once again he just wanted to embrace him.

As the ceremony came to end, people slowly started to leave and after some time it was only Luneth left. Aria had been lowered into the ground, covered with soil and a tombstone with her name had been raised. It was when Luneth sat in front of the tombstone as reality hit him, seeing Aria's name engraved made him realize that she wasn't coming back to him. And with that tears quietly rolled down his cheeks.

Arc, Refia and Ingus had also stayed when the rest of the guests had left. They had a quiet talk about who should be the one to approach Luneth as they thought all three of them would be overwhelming.

"Maybe you should be the one?" Arc suggested to Refia. "You're good at saying the right things and make one feel better."

Refia shook her head slowly. "I don't think that's what he needs. It's probably better if you go Arc, he might need a brother who loves him-" she didn't finish her sentence. A brilliant idea had struck her. "Ingus!" Her finger pointing at the blonde male.

"Huh?" Was all the blonde could say.

"He needs you of course!" she exclaimed and Arc nodded in agreement. "He needs to know there's still love in this world."

"You want me to hit on him?" His eyes wide with surprise.

"Of course not, stupid!" Refia hit him on the head with a paper fan she pulled out of nowhere. "Just go up to him and show him that you're there for him, no matter what!"

Now it was Ingus turn to shake his head. "I can't do that, I wouldn't know what to say."

"You don't have to say anything," Arc cut in. "Just be there for him." And with that Arc gave Ingus a push in the direction of Luneth.

"But-" Ingus tried to protest but stopped as he saw them both glaring at him.

"We're counting on you!" Refia called after him.

Not really having much choice, Ingus took a deep breath and approached his friend. Luneth must have heard him because as he got closer Luneth stood up, but his eyes were still on the grave before him. Ingus placed his hand softly on Luneth's shoulder and could feel that he was really tense, and he saw that his hands were in fists. Ingus leaned forward to get a better look at Luneth's face and was surprised to see how much anger that otherwise so happy face could hold.

Before Ingus had a chance to ask what was wrong Luneth spoke through gritted teeth. "Do you believe in God?"

"What?" That was the last question Ingus had expected and therefore he had no prepared answer.

"I don't," Luneth continued without waiting for an answer. "If there was a God, he wouldn't have let this happen," he violently gestured with his arms. "If there was a God," Luneth continued raising his voice. "He wouldn't let people feel this much pain." Luneth tightened his fists, he was ready to punch something, he was ready to punch God in the face. "He wouldn't let people die!" Luneth screamed and without looking he just punched, right out in the air he punched and punched. He continued to let his arms swing randomly while tears started to build up in the corners of his eyes.

"Luneth? Calm down," Ingus tired but Luneth wasn't listening. He tried to get closer to the devastated boy while fending off any punches that came in his direction. "Luneth, listen!" Talking didn't do much so the blonde had to go forceful, he grabbed Luneth's wrist just as a strike was close to hit Ingus in the face and pulled him close to himself, embracing him with his free arm. He held Luneth in a tight hold to prevent him from continuing his outburst while speaking in a calm voice. "Luneth, listen to me," the captured boy stopped struggling but he couldn't stop shaking, if it was from anger or sadness Ingus didn't know, he guessed both. "Luneth, it's okay, everything you feel is okay to feel. But remember that you don't have to go through these feeling alone, we are all here for you. I'm here for you," he emphasized the last part.

His words seemed to get through to Luneth's as his body started to relax in Ingus' arms, tears still falling from his eyes. Luneth felt weak, he hadn't been sleeping or eating properly the last few days and after his anger outbreak his last bit of energy was drained. Suddenly he felt his legs give way underneath him, if Ingus hadn't been holding him he would've fallen to the ground. But now he had Ingus' support, and they both slowly slid to the ground.

Ingus looked Luneth straight in the eyes while stroking some tears away from his cheek. "I'm here, okay?" he assured him once again.

Luneth nodded, appreciating that he didn't have to go through this alone anymore. For a long time now he had struggled through his sadness by himself while doing his best to wear a smile for Aria. He thought it had been the right way to deal with his feelings since they were his he shouldn't bother someone else with them, right? But now…now he thought that maybe it wasn't so bad to share them with a friend.

"Thank you…" he whispered and Ingus replied him with a small smile. And in that moment, as the sun slowly started to set before them, a slight feeling of peace was born inside Luneth's devastated heart.

**TBC**

**AN: I hope you enjoyed this chapter, and if you did, why not leave a review letting me know how much? It would really motivate me to write more :)**

**Also I hope Luneth's feelings towards God didn't offend anyone...**


	3. Chapter 3 Death Is Not The End

**Chapter 3. Death is not the end**

With the comfort of Ingus, Luneth managed to calm down, he was still sad, he was still crying and he was still hoping it was all a very bad dream. But he now knew he had friends he could count on and that made him feel relief.

Ingus and Luneth had been quietly seated inform of Aria's grave for quite some time until Ingus broke the silence. He placed a hand on Luneth's shoulder before speaking. "You know, Aria wouldn't want to see you sad, she would want you to take this moment, take your feeling and grow with them." He hoped his words were encouraging and not misinterpreted as crying being something bad, he just wanted to see his friend smile again.

Luneth wiped away the tears from his cheeks with the sleeve of his shirt and slowly gazed up to the now starry sky. "Yeah? And how would you know?" He didn't mean to sound arrogant but he kind of did so he quickly mumbled a quiet "I'm sorry." He was still a bit emotionally unstable.

"Well…" Ingus started. He wasn't sure if this was a good moment to truthfully answer that question. You don't just confess to someone who just lost the presumably love of his life. But Luneth was looking at him like he was demanding an answer and maybe that wasn't so weird, if you feel like your world is falling apart, wouldn't you want all the answers you could get? Even the most trivial stuff? So Ingus continued. "I know because," he took a deep breath, consciously avoiding eye contact and forcing himself not to fiddle with his fingers, it wasn't his style. But he was nervous. "Because I know how she would feel." Ingus pretty much knew Luneth would question how he could know that as well so he prolonged. "Cause I feel the same." He finally looked up into the eyes of the other boy.

"What do you mean 'the same'?" Luneth's face was nothing but clueless.

Ingus was now really questioning if this was a good idea. Luneth may not be ready to hear something like a love confession now. But if not now, then when? "I mean, the way I feel about you, is the same way Aria feel…felt about you."

Luneth was still looking pretty much clueless but some kind of realization seemed to reflect in his eyes.

With another deep breath Ingus dropped the bomb. "Meaning…I love you."

Luneth just sat there, staring, his mouth as wide as his eyes. His emotions…he wasn't ready. He doesn't know what to do. What to respond. What to feel. So he did nothing. And once again they just sat there in silence.

A few moments passed before Ingus got up from his seat on the ground. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have said anything." He got ready to leave but Luneth quickly grabbed him by the hem of his jeans.

"Don't go."

For a second or two Ingus froze, unable to comprehend what just happened. How could Luneth want him to stay after being so inconsiderate of what he might feel after being given a confession in such an emotional time? Quietly Ingus sat back down again.

"For how long?" Luneth asked, staring at the ground.

"I've liked you?" Ingus thought for a moment. "I realized it some time before you met Aria."

"I see."

As another moment of awkward silence was about to fall upon them Ingus took of his jacket and put it around Luneth who was starting to shiver. "It's getting cold, let's get you home. Arc is probably worried." He stood up and held out a hand towards Luneth who accepted it, but before he got up he let his eyes fell on Aria's grave, as if to ask her if it was okay to leave her alone. A short moment later he got up with the help of Ingus. His legs were still a little wobbly, actually his whole body was quite exhausted.

They slowly made their way towards Luneth's home. Luneth's steps were heavy and every step he managed to take felt like a small accomplishment. Like his life wasn't over just because it was pointless. At least right now his life felt pretty pointless. What did he have to live for when the one he loved wasn't in his life? But he had his friends and his family, at least he owed them not to feel the empty pain he felt. So he had to keep on living. Right?

"Ingus?"

"Hm…yes?"

"About this…uhm…your feelings. I don't know what to…"

"You don't have to do anything." Ingus tried to give him a reassuring smile. "Just think about yourself now. Take one day at a time."

Luneth nodded.

"Come to school tomorrow and maybe afterwards we can all go see a movie?" Hopefully some quality time with friends could get Luneth to feel slightly better.

"I'd like that." If one looked closely, like Ingus always did when it came to Luneth, one could see a slight curve in the corners of Luneth's lips, like he was smiling.

The next day Luneth did come to school. Of course not as his usual cheery self, but at least he came and he even participated in his friends' conversations at times but mostly he was just listening. Arc and Refia were both highly relieved to see he wasn't a complete wreck, despite considering the circumstances he had all the right to be. But neither of them, nor Ingus, really knew how to handle Luneth now. Did he want to talk about it? Or did he want them to proceed as usual, as if nothing had happened?

Placing a soft hand on Luneth's shoulder Refia looked him in the eye, she figured she might as well ask him instead of assuming what he might want. "We are here for you if you want to talk, you know?"

Luneth nodded, his face expressing that he indeed knew that.

"Or if you want to talk about something else to keep your mind off it, we can do that too," Refia continued with a reassuring smile upon her soft lips.

"My mind is pretty much occupied with thoughts of Aria, what we could have done, what she is missing, things I want to tell her and so on, so for now…" he tried to smile but all he could manage was a slight curve in the corners of his mouth. "I want to pretend I'm alright."

His three friends understood and nodded.

"So how about going to the movies after school?" Ingus asked and was glad to see that everyone agreed.

They let Luneth choose the movie, bought him popcorn and whatever more he desired. They thought he deserved to be spoiled and he didn't complain, truthfully it actually made him feel a little happier. Though trivial, it showed how much they cared for him and that made him think that life wouldn't be full of misery forever.

On the way home they had a nice chat about the movie and Luneth thought it kind of felt like old times, which was a relief.

"I-I'm sorry but," a slight hesitation. "I need to go see Aria," He didn't know why he had hesitated, or why he felt like it was an awkward thing to say but maybe it was because of the atmosphere reminded of a time that used to be.

"Of course," Refia smiled.

"I see you at home," Arc waved.

Ingus smiled and nodded. "See you."

Happy to see that they didn't think any weird of it, Luneth gave them a small smile as he waved and ran off in the direction of the graveyard.

Luneth slowly approached the grave that belonged to Aria, he didn't really know what to say but at the same time he knew what he wanted to say. He gently let his hand touch the cold headstone before sitting down in front of it.

"Aria, I hope you can hear me," he paused as if waiting for a sign that she was listening but when nothing came he continued. "I've decided…to stay happy," his eyes resting on her name before him. "I want to enjoy life, I want to have fun with my friends," he hoped she wouldn't mind. "But you know what?" Once again, he made that pause waiting for a reply, this time his eyes rose towards the darkening sky. "I will always love you. No matter what." And in that moment Luneth saw the sign, the proof she was listening, that she was approving of his choice, in the sky above her gravestone a single star appeared. Luneth smiled, and not a weak one this time, a genuine smile. "Thank you Aria."

**AN: Thanks for reading everyone, if you got the time, why not leave a review? Sorry, this was a short chapter but the next one will be up really soon and it will be the last one. **


	4. Chapter 4 Epilog

**Epilog**

Six months later and Luneth had still not given Ingus a reply to his confession. Or as for now that would be _confessions_. About once every month Ingus would remind Luneth how he felt about him, and every time Luneth would squirm away from it. He would either say he wasn't ready, or change the subject and sometimes plain out ignore it, like he didn't even hear it.

A small frustration was starting to build up in Ingus, if Luneth would tell him 'no' at least he could move on but as long as Luneth was keeping this up Ingus still hade a small sense of hope. But he had decided he was now tired of waiting around. _"Six month must be enough of time to move on, right?"_ Ingus thought, as much as it pained him to think it; Aria wasn't coming back and Luneth would have to accept that.

Arc and Refia had some things to take care of in school so Ingus and Luneth were walking home alone on that day. Which Ingus saw as a good opportunity to once again remind Luneth of his love for him.

"Luneth?"

"Hm?" Luneth looked up to meet Ingus' gaze.

"You know I still love you, right?"

Luneth's eyes fell to meet the ground. "Yeah."

"And I can't wait forever…I mean, it's hard to not know what you feel about the whole idea."

"Well…I don't know," it came out as a mere mumble.

"I am sorry I'm being hard on you by constantly brining this up but," he paused not really wanting to continue the sentence. "But if you don't want us to happen just say 'no'."

"But I just don't know," Luneth's voice came out a little stronger than a mumble this time. "I like you, I do."

And that's how that hope inside Ingus never died despite Luneth's inability to give him a proper answer.

"But," Luneth continued. "I don't know if I can ever love again."

Ingus sighed, he had heard that reply before and it wasn't satisfying enough for him. "Well, how about this? Let's try a kiss."

"Huh?" Luneth looked up from the ground just to let his facial expression show how much little sense he thought that made.

Ingus went on to explain just how much sense it did make. "If it doesn't feel good, like if it's weird or bad, we move on, we stay friends, nothing more."

Luneth was listening.

"But if it feels good we give it a try." Ingus smiled like it was the most genius idea of the century, and it kind of was since no matter the outcome he would at least get a chance to kiss Luneth. Unless he utterly refused but that was out of the question.

"Give what a try?"

"_Ah, at least he didn't complain about the kiss,"_ Ingus thought. "A relationship of course."

"Uhm… alright," Luneth agreed.

"Yes!" Ingus couldn't help but feeling a little enthusiastic but seeing Luneth looking at him weirdly he calmed down. "Sorry."

Realizing he was actually about to kiss Luneth for the first time, Ingus got a little nervous, but not so nervous that he would let it stop this from happening. "So…" he took a step closer to Luneth. "Can I kiss you then?"

"Here?" surprised Luneth looked at him and the around them to make sure no one saw them.

"No one is around so," Ingus confirmed.

"Okay," Luneth swallowed his own nervous feeling and closed his eyes.

Feeling more nervous than ever, but still extremely happy, Ingus closed the distance between them, he let one hand rest on Luneth's shoulder while the other was gently placed on the back of Luneth's head. Ingus' heart started to beat faster as he leaned in closer and closer towards Luneth, he closed his eyes before finishing the last distance between them, letting their lips interlock.

It felt so much better than all he had ever imagined, it was perfect and if Luneth were to reject him now he wasn't sure he would accept it. In this moment he couldn't picture a life as mere friends. To really savor the moment he let the kiss last longer than really was necessary and when he opened his eyes, ready to end the it, he saw Luneth's mesmerizing violet eyes looking back into his own deep blue.

Surprised, Ingus took a step back, nervously scratching the back of his head, his eyes averted from Luneth. "So…how was it?"

Luneth took a short moment to think it over. "Well…not too bad." Luneth himself was quite shocked to hear himself say it, but it was true that it had felt quite nice. When he had opened his eyes, just before Ingus, seeing his face so close he had became fully aware that it was in fact Ingus who was kissing him and somehow it made him feel safe.

As he feared a rejecting answer Ingus was scared to ask but he knew he had to. "Does that mean you are willing to give me a chance?"

Luneth was quiet and Ingus could see he was thinking, Luneth had a special look on his face when he was trying to solve a problem of some sort. So he stayed patient and waited.

It felt like an eternity had passed when Luneth finally spoke. "Yes."

"Yes?" Ingus wasn't sure he had heard that right, did Luneth really say yes?

"Yes!" Luneth couldn't help but laugh seeing Ingus surprised expression.

Actually comprehending the answer Ingus turned from shocked to beyond happy in just a second, his smile probably wider than ever before. He was so happy he felt the need to fist bump the air. "This is the best day ever!"

"Oh come on! Now you're being embarrassing," Luneth gave him a loose punch on the shoulder.

"I couldn't care less!" Ingus put one arm around Luneth and pulled him into a one-arm hug while his free hand ruffled Luneth's silver hair. "I just love you so much!"

And so, as they walked home, with Ingus still holding Luneth close as to remind him that the present was something firm and real, Luneth unknowingly set out on a road of what would turn into a beautiful relationship.

The End

**AN: I'd really, really like to thank Silver Ecstasy for all her help through this story, not only has she beta'd it (the last chapter too which I forgot to mention Dx) but she has encouraged me and if it had not been for her honest and helpful inputs this story would be nowhere near what it is today. I'm telling you she has saved you reader from all kinds of boring and shitty scenes I've written, she even helped me write the ending of this one which I think is perfect! She have made this idea possible, she have made it into what can actually be called; a story. So I hope you have enjoyed reading it! If you did why not leave a review and let me know all about it. But I understand if you don't have the time right now cause you gotta check out Silver Ecstasy's even more amazing stories! :D**


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